The Homeowner Protection Act
We recently published a bulletin on Ontario's passing of the Homeowner Protection Act, 2024, which, among other things, introduced a 10-day cooling-off period for buyers of new freehold homes (the "Cooling-Off Period"). During the Cooling-Off Period, buyers will be able to rescind their agreements of purchase and sale without reason or penalty, similar to the provisions in place for pre-construction condominiums. The original announcement can be found in our July 25, 2025 bulletin.
Proposed Regulations
On July 31, 2024, the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement (the "Ministry") announced that it is seeking to introduce regulations to govern and guide the Cooling-Off Period. Accordingly, the Ministry has prepared a consultation paper to inform community stakeholders and is requesting their feedback on the proposed substance of the upcoming regulations.
The proposed regulations will prescribe how the Cooling-Off Period will be implemented, including:
- updating the addenda to agreements of purchase and sale;
- providing for a new information sheet for buyers, which would form part of their agreements of purchase and sale; and
- ensuring that Cooling-Off Periods would only begin after buyers
have received copies of:
- their executed agreements of purchase and sale;
- the required updated addendum, noted in item 1 above, signed by both the buyer and builder; and
- the information sheet, noted in item 2 above, signed by both the buyer and builder.
The Cooling-Off Period would not apply to the purchase of a new freehold home on a unit in a vacant land condominium or on a parcel of tied land, as these are already covered by the cooling-off period under the Condominium Act, 1998.
The proposed regulations will also prescribe:
- a rate of interest that must be paid to buyers who cancel their agreements of purchase and sale within the Cooling-Off Period; and
- the authority of the HCRA to impose administrative penalties of up to $50,000 for builders' non-compliance.
Seeking Input
Interested stakeholders are asked to submit any comments they have on the proposal to the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement by emailing NewHomes@ontario.ca no later than September 16, 2024.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
